Hurricane Irene causes record flows in Musconetcong River

Musconetcong Watershed AssociationLike most bridges over the Musconetcong River, the bridge between in Butler Park (Washington Township) and Lebanon Township was inundated with flood waters.

BLOOMSBURY — It’s official, the Musconetcong River reached record flows after Hurricane Irene. According to the U.S. Geological Survey gauge here, the Musky peaked at a flow of 8,350 cubic feet per second (cfs) at about noon on Sunday, Aug. 28.

The depth gauge at that site showed the river peaking at about 8.8 feet, more than two and a half feet over flood stage.

“I spent the day travelling up and down the river documenting conditions and talking to residents who had come out to watch,” said Beth Styler Barry, executive director of the Musconetcong Watershed Association on Friday, Sept 2. “I was told many times by “old-timers” that this flooding was something they’d never seen before.”

In 1999, the rains of Hurricane Floyd caused flows in the Musconetcong River to reach 5,720 cfs, a storm that many people use as a reference for high-water. However, Irene did not have to surpass another hurricane to make it into the record book.

“The previous ‘flood of record’ on the Musconetcong was not a hurricane but a winter storm on Jan. 25, 1979. During that storm flows reached 7,200 cfs,” according to Geoff Goll of Princeton Hydro, an engineering firm involved in many restoration projects on the Musconetcong River. The USGS has 104 years of data on the Musconetcong River.

Like most bridges over the Musconetcong River, the bridge between in Butler Park (Washington Township) and Lebanon Township was inundated with floodwaters. Credit: Musconetcong Watershed Association